Financial support for Bishop Museum may be in jeopardy and the institution’s reputation is tainted after the board of directors decided to take a human resource issue and “blow the museum up with it,” according to outgoing President and CEO Melanie Ide.
Ide told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser in an interview that she gave the museum’s board of directors until 5 p.m. Tuesday to agree to meet with her and discuss concerns about the work environment that were raised by employees. The board did not respond to her, and Ide said she is finalizing her letter of resignation.
“It’s amateurish and it’s wrong. There is no reason we can’t get it fixed. It is insane what is going on. I don’t care if you’re a $25 donor or a $25 million donor, that confidence in the museum has been damaged,” said Ide in an interview. “It (the museum) is an extremely special and unique place that deserves so much more than it is getting now. This is an unfortunate moment, but it doesn’t define who the museum is. Unfortunately, this is the legacy of this board. They decided
to take an HR (human resource) issue and blow the museum up with it because they couldn’t see … the bigger picture. We could have solved this problem together. We really could have. I think they put themselves in a legal box, got in it, and … ‘we’re not going to change our strategy.’ They didn’t say, ‘Well, is this worth losing their CEO?’ I guess they thought it wasn’t worth coming to the table and having a conversation. I don’t know why that is so hard. The board owns this.”
The move comes 12 days after she returned from a trip to Europe and got a letter from the museum’s board of directors saying she was being placed on leave along with Wesley “Kaiwi” Yoon, vice president of operations, planning and project management, and general counsel Barron Oda.
The three officials were blocked from accessing their work email accounts and work records and products, according to Ide, who said the letter indicated the board action does not constitute a disciplinary measure or imply misconduct while the investigation is ongoing.
Ide, who was hired by Bishop Museum in 2018 from Ralph Appelbaum Associates, the world’s largest museum exhibition design firm, on Friday told the newspaper there were “specific concerns about the behavior of a few employees that is being looked into because they feel it is a troubling work environment.”
Yoon and Oda did not reply to Star-Advertiser requests for comment on Ide’s planned resignation.
Tuesday evening, the Bishop Museum Board voted unanimously to
support and continue the workplace environment independent investigation to its completion, according to a statement released on behalf of 20 of the 21 board members. Ide was also a member of the board but did not participate in the
deliberations Tuesday.
“The Board discussed and affirmed the priority for the health and safety of the staff who continue to drive the Museum forward every day. The Board also weighed in on the administrative leave of three leaders and determined that because of the failure to address and resolve serious workplace environment issues, it remains in the best interest of the staff and the Museum to maintain the current course until the investigation is completed. The Board is committed to providing a strong future for the Bishop Museum by ensuring a safe and healthy workplace,” according to the statement.
The museum board members are Wayne M. Pitluck, chair; ‘Aulani Wilhelm, first vice chair; Todd Apo, second vice chair; Valerie Shintaku, secretary; plus Danny K. Akaka Jr., Maenette Benham, Ann Botticelli, Lauran Bromley, Amanda Ellis, Elizabeth Rice Grossman, Patrick V. Kirch, Anton C. Krucky,
Watters O. Martin Jr., James Moniz, John Morgan, Lance Parker, William (Billy) K. Richards Jr., Michael Takayama, Vaughn G.A. Vasconcellos and Gaylord Wilcox.
Ide said she heard from Gov. David Ige and various state lawmakers who expressed concern about
$17.5 million in state funding for the coming year, operations and leadership moving forward.
That money includes
$7.5 million for operations and $10 million for capital improvement projects to cover deferred maintenance, fire protection, infrastructure upgrades and security, “whether from cyber, human, animal, or natural forces,” and other needs, according to a news release following the 2022 legislative session in May. Ide said she was scheduled for a meeting on federal funding for the nonprofit museum with U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, before she was unexpectedly put on leave.
She also said a new vice president is slated to start at a time of extreme executive turbulence.
Ige did not reply to a Star-Advertiser request for comment. The museum’s board said operations are not affected and that the institution’s finances are fine.
Meleanna Meyer, an educator and contemporary muralist who headed the making of the murals in
Pacific Hall and Hawaiian Hall at the museum, told the Star-Advertiser that “the rush to judge, to be swayed by poor communications and lack of transparency, have left us all in the dark regarding a how, who, why — and whether the problems at hand … are solvable.”
“A hoomalu should be called — for all parties. (A pause or rest from the problem at hand) is a way for us as a community to reconvene and continue looking at ways to solve this constellation of issues, and what the compromises should be. Everyone just makes assumptions! I’m confident that this messy brouhaha can be dealt with in a way that continues to be respectful of all parties and best for Hawaii’s important cultural institution,” said Meyer.
Bishop Museum receives about 200,000 visitors every year and is Hawaii’s top historical, cultural and research institution focused on Hawaii and other Pacific islands. It was founded in 1889 by Charles Reed Bishop in honor of his late wife, Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, the last descendant of the royal Kamehameha family.
The museum is home to a large collection of Hawaiian artifacts and royal family heirlooms, including millions of cultural objects, documents, artworks and photographs, as well as more
than 22 million biological specimens.
”I think a lot of people are sorry. A lot of people are sorry. For the board, I wish we could have found a creative way to solve our problems together. We have shared objectives, and I was willing to come to the table,” said Ide. “I hope the community is willing to support the museum in all ways it can. This is such an important institution. It’s perhaps the most important museum anywhere. … I mean it. … I know it in my gut and in my head. The more you learn about this museum, the more you want to support it.”
